Green Options

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For two weeks in the end of September, there was no gas to be found in the county surrounding Asheville, North Carolina and most of the gas stations remained closed.

The recent hurricanes are being blamed for shutting down the nation’s gas supply by up to 22%. But the problem remained far worse in this region of North Carolina.

Even over a week after the main pipeline to the East Coast, the Colonial pipeline, had reopened, gas remained scarce and there were few answers as to why.

There’s nothing sustainable about the $700 billion Federal bailout plan for the decomposing financial sector of the US financial system. Americans know it, judging by the outpouring of objections sent to US legislators and reflected in national polls this past week.

According to various estimates by experts in the financial industry, the proposal to let the government buy bad assets from banks range from $500 billion to $1 trillion. Hank Paulson, Treasury Secretary, and Ben Bernanke, Fed Chairman, are asking for $700 billion – for now.

Keep in mind that this is ON TOP OF the costs already incurred for various government actions this year, including, but not limited to:

* up to $85 billion for AIG
* up to $29 billion to fund JPMorgan’s takeover of Bear Stearns
* up to $200 billion each for nationalization of Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac
* as much as $50 billion to insure money market funds
* up to $25 billion for special loans extended to GM and Ford

Let’s not forget the billions of dollars in expenses to help those in flooded or hurricane-destroyed areas – so recent that the costs aren’t even in for the damage done from Hurricane Gustav and Hurricane Ike. There’s plenty of other federal funds flowing to counties throughout the US that were declared federal disaster areas in 2008 – like in Vernon County, Wisconsin, where we own a silviculture operation.

What I have come to appreciate about Democrats is that they like to talk about the specifics of policy.  Dare I say, the Democratic Party is the party of wonk? Sure, I’m painting with a broad brush, but I’m going to take that liberty because it segues nicely with this video I want to show you of an interview CNN’s Anderson Cooper did with Sen. Barack Obama. What I liked about what it was that Obama doesn’t focus on the [...]

Each year researchers at North Carolina State University predict the oncoming hurricane season. With summer just around the corner for the Northern Hemisphere, their latest report is out, and it’s billing an active year for the Atlantic.

However, thankfully for those coastal cities on the Atlantic, the number of storms making landfall will stick close to the average.